It's Been Too Long
by FashInspiration
Summary: A high school reunion, hosted by the uber-fabulous Massie Block, brings back the PC...and a whole load of unwelcome guests.
1. Chapter 1

Dylan moaned and checked her face in her compact mirror for the thirtieth time. Next to her, Alicia leaned back, framed Dylan's face with her fingers and scrunched her flawlessly plucked brows. Dylan turned to her urgently.

"Well?" She asked impatiently, tapping her black leather ankle boots impatiently.

"You look fine."

"Are you _sure_? I don't look like a chipmunk or anything, do I?"

"Yes." Alicia rolled her eyes slightly and then smiled slightly. Even though it annoyed her, she had kind of missed Dylan's so-totally-not-nervous-just-striving-to-look-as-good-as-she-could mode, which she went in to every time a big event was coming up.

Alicia's iPhone vibrated in her lap and she picked it up.

**Massiekur: Only 4 more hours. Hope all you gurls are ready!**

Alicia giggled and turned to Dylan.

"Can you believe Massie _still _hasn't changed her username?"

Dylan shrugged. "She loves her massacres." The two girls shared a knowing glance.

"Speaking of which, have you seen her recently?" Dylan turned, interested.

"Nope." Alicia slipped her phone into her lambskin Fendi baguette and quickly ran a tube of lipstick over her lips. "I heard Kuh-laire did a campaign for her a while back. She's doing well, apparently; I covered her line a few years back when I was with Vogue, but then..well…you know."

Dylan nodded and nudged Alicia affectionately. It had been big news a few years back, when Alicia had turned down an ah-mazing promotion and left the ranks of Vogue to work for ABC, in a position making only half as much. At the time, Dylan's mom had seriously questioned Alicia's decision, but Dylan knew it was the right choice; Alicia had been prepping for a job as a television reporter for all her life. Sure enough, Alicia had had one of the fastest climbs in history, making it to the nightly news in only three years. A Harvard degree, a pretty face and natural charisma had put Alicia on the map as a rising star to watch.

Dylan and Alicia were the only ones that kept in touch still; her mom's show and the Marvils' reality show both belonged to the same company as Alicia's news show and they had met a few years back at a company event and promptly moved in together.

"What about Kristen? You heard from her yet? Y'all were always kinda close." Dylan jumped as she shook herself out of her reverie.

"No. I saw her, obviously." Alicia laughed her tinkling newscaster laugh.

"Well, I imagined she must have been mortified. She always did have a problem with her girls and now they're projected up on a giant television for all the LBRs of the world to see."

Dylan giggled and flipped her flawlessly straightened hair.

" Flight 404 to Los Angeles, first class, please come to the desk. "

Dylan and Alicia jumped, shaking themselves out of their reminiscences and picking up their matching plaid LV suitcases. They hurried toward the desk.

Alicia leaned back in her comfortable seat and rolled her eyes at the cheap touch-screen set they provided. Why had she not asked her dad to send the private jet? The first class on this plane reeked of cheapness and LBRs.

Alicia smiled slightly; even after all these years, she still hadn't been able to get rid of her habit of using that term. It was just one of the many after effects of Massie Block.

Her phone vibrated again.

**ChristopherDocks: Hey**

**Leesh3U: Hey! **

**ChristopherDocks: What r u doing now? I'm at starbucks. Want to meet? :(**

**Leesh3U: Im on a plane **

**ChristopherDocks: :(**

Alicia giggled slightly at the thought of Christopher pouting, the tan skin around his stunning blue eyes crinkling slightly. She had definitely not expected falling for a guy almost twice her age, but she some reason though, Christopher just never seemed to be _in _to her. Sure, they met up, but he always just treated her like his daughter. She frowned in frustration.

The man across from her slammed himself down on the seat and groaned slightly. Alicia snickered and angled her head slightly, wanting to check him out. Unfortunately, from her angle, all she could see were his canvas Polo sneakers. They were _cute _sneakers though, and any guy who appreciated Ralph Lauren was definitely someone worth talking to.

She sat up, planning on complimenting his sneakers, and came face-to-face with an all-too-familiar mop of wavy black hair, peeking out from a worn Yankees cap.

For some reason, the gods hated her. Her gorgeous ex, Josh Hotz, was sitting right across from her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! For the record, I will try to get this updated at least once a week, depending on my schedule. Also, this isn't exactly completely "with" the Clique books, but it's not AU either, in case anyone was wondering.**

* * *

Kristen swung her black-and-gray Coach Madison travel bag over her shoulder and snatched up her huge LV suitcase, packed with all of the bare essentials for a top model to survive; hair care, skin care, eye care, foot care, everything a girl could possibly need and then some. Kristen shook her head in slight exasperation.

She stepped into the throng of people hurrying toward her flights and arched her neck elegantly, scanning the tightly packed crowd. The flash of yellow confirmed what she had suspected. She bent down slightly and hurried forward into the crowd.

For a moment, she was back on the field again, ducking and weaving around defenders, feeling the adrenaline rush through her blood, the scent of freshly mowed grass attacking her nose and the sounds of hundreds of voices chanting still throbbing in her eardrums. Euphoria shot through her as her feet deftly maneuvered the ball and for one second, in the instant before her foot shot forward and struck the ball, she saw _everything_. Her senses entered a superhuman level and for that one moment, everything was clear; everything was possible.

"Ummmm…Kristen?"

A sharp pain jolted through Kristen's chest; a desperate longing, like a lover long forgotten. She shook her self quickly out of her reverie; an attractive, baby-faced blonde stared at her, slightly befuddled.

The two women stared at each other for a moment before both broke into ecstatic squeals.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Kristen through her long arms around Claire's neck and laughed. The two women embraced.

After what felt like a lifetime, the two split, each immediately scanning the other's outfits; an unavoidable habit they had naturally picked up from Massie and which had come in handy; the fashion business was relentless and if you didn't pretend to love someone else's outfit, they wouldn't pretend to love yours either.

"You look ah-mazing." Kristen gushed and meant it and Claire smiled; she knew Kristen would immediately recognize it as the "right-back-at-you smile".

Kristen sniggered and stuck her arm around Claire's and began dragging her to the waiting area, where they could sit and chat. Claire could only laugh breathlessly; she was out of breath already from Kristen's insanely fast walking speed. She giggled as other people's eyes immediately zoomed in on Kristen, and then to the huge blown up photograph of Kristen on the television above a nearby boutique.

Kristen groaned and Claire's giggles became guffaws. That photo was the only campaign she had ever done with Kristen and she hated to think what she had done to the poor unsuspecting woman. It really was a beautiful photo though; Kristen was completely naked, with her two arms wrapped around her chest and her back arched slightly. Her eyes were closed and the words _Ebullient Beauty _were stamped onto her back.

Kristen slapped Claire slightly as the two women headed for their flight.

* * *

_Damn. Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn. Dammit all_. Josh slammed his head into his hands. He had tried everything; television, music, sleep, food. Nothing could take his mind off the fact that his only regret in life was sitting across the aisle from him, looking a million times better than she did before.

His hands instinctively went to the beautiful golden band wrapped around his fourth finger. He couldn't, he shouldn't…so why did he want her so badly all of a sudden?

* * *

**Kind of a short chapter this week; finals are murdering me and I'm planning a new story, this time for Bleach...**


	3. Chapter 3

**My Christmas break plans have changed and I may not be able to post, so I'm just gonna post this short short short one now. Enjoy...I hope.**

Taylor Swift's new album rang out in the dull, suffocating air of the private jet. A pair of turquoise booties tapped along impatiently to the beat of the song. One pair of cold amber eyes eyed the intercom button. A flawlessly manicured button slammed into the intercom button.

"Pascale, are we there yet?"

"No, madam." An exasperated voice quipped from the speaker.

"Now Pascale, don't take that tone with me."

"Of course not, madam, I would never do such a thing."

"I hope so, Pascale. For your sake more than for mine."

In the pilot's cockpit, the lonely Italian shivered.

* * *

Alicia and Dylan bent down and in one flawlessly synchronized motion, tore their three-hundred-dollar heels off and tossed them unceremoniously in the trash can. Turning they ran down the huge lobby at full speed, paying no regard to the horrors the carpets were doing to their flawless pedicures.

On the other end of the long hallway, Claire and Kristen clutched their handbags, waving their free arms frantically as they ducked and turned to avoid crashing into their fellow travelers. Makeup samples and contact lenses fell out of their hastily closed suitcases, but they didn't seem to care.

The four women slammed into each other at full speed, their thin arms wrapping around each other like vines. They squealed shamelessly.

"Thank gawd I put on waterproof mascara." Alicia giggled.

"Ditto." Kristen smiled.

Dylan smacked her gum excitedly, wrapping her right arm around Claire and her left arm around Kristen.

"Anyone know a good Starbucks's nearby?" Claire asked. "I think we definitely need to catch up."

And the four now slightly disheveled women wandered off to the nearest coffee shop, not noticing a lone pair of eyes, watching the four receding pairs of legs.

* * *

Josh scanned the crowd halfheartedly as his finger steadily flicked through the pictures on his iPhone. Old ones of him and Leesh, ones he had never had the heart to delete, even though he told himself time and time again that he was over her.

"Reminiscing?"

Josh jumped slightly as his eyes rose to meet a familiar pair of mismatched eyes.

"Cam!" Josh reached out and grabbed the offered hand, his heart lifting for the first time since he had boarded that plane.

"And us too." Kemp and Plovert rolled their eyes and slapped Josh, annoyed.

"Anyone seen Derrick?" Dempsey asked from his spot next to the trash can. Josh jumped again and then punched Dempsey in the shoulder.

"No 'hi' or anything? Jeez, I feel so loved." Dempsey grinned and punched him back.

"Good to see you too, man, but seriously, where is Derrick? Wasn't he the one who called us here anyways?"

The other guys nodded and offered speculations. What they didn't see was the pair of observant eyes watching their every move.

* * *

**A/N: Like I said, this is just sort of a little extra thing in case I don't post next week. A longer chapter should be coming up soon, so bear with me (will the Queen Bee finally arrive?)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey girls! Did you miss me? Silly question, of course you did. ;P I know, I haven't posted in forever; I've just been so busy, what with fighting off all of my mega-adoring fans and what not. But I'm back. So be happy :D**

* * *

Linda Lake slammed her size two butt down on a hard plastic seat and glared up at her tall, athletic, half-her-age model boyfriend, who could only sigh and sit down with her. She smiled, pleased at herself. After all, they did say she had the stubbornness of a pig. Which she didn't mind one bit, mind you. She did become one of the top reporters at InStyle magazine by being yielding. She was rich and fabulous and that was all that really mattered in life, right? And as for this seat, NOTHING was going to make her get up out of it until her flight arr-was that MAssie Block?

Linda threw herself out of her seat and her boyfriend experienced a momentary feeling of relief, until he realized that the woman was already at least sixty-something feet away. _Damn! How did she move that fast in four-inch heels?_

Massie had finally made it into the cool, air-conditioned airport when she was violently accosted by some crazy lady in a horrid mustard-yellow outfit who was claiming to be a reporter. For InStyle.

"Can I have an interview?" The wannabe asked, brushing her overbleached hair away from her leather-skin face.

"No."

Unperturbed, the woman continued to talk.

"I work for InStyle. What can you say about the recent rumors about illegal materials in your Spring/Summer line?"

"I don't recall any rumors." Massie grinded her teeth. She was tired (really. She didn't hire Pascale to fly slowly, so she didn't understand why he did?), New York was sweltering in the summer and she looked awful, she reflected as she examined her appearance in a nearby window.

"Okay," the woman responded, "then what about the recent allegations that you accepted bribes from several celebrities to bring fedoras to women's fashion in your next-"

"I haven't heard about that."

"Well, according to recent allegations by Vog-"

Massie had enough. She snapped.

"Look, crazy lady. I don't know who you're trying to fool in those hideous mustard jeans, but you look like baby barf. So please keep your over-tanned anorexic claws away from my clothes, because unlike yours, they look good and I don't want them ruined. And, by the way? Tell Tiffany next time she hires a reporter, to make sure that she gets one who knows how to dress herself."

And turning on her heel, she stomped off.

* * *

Derrick laughed as he rolled over in the grass.

"Dude, what the fuck?" Josh stared at him kind of funny and Derrick instantly sobered up.

"What?" He scowled.

"You suck!" Cam scowled back and Kemp and Plovert nodded in agreement.

"Sorry. It's been a while."

"A long while, from the looks of it." Dempsey cocked an eyebrow as he jogged over.

Derrick tossed a lump of grass at Josh's grassed-stained Converses.

"It's true, man." Dempsey admitted as he threw himself down beside Derrick and Josh followed in suit, leaving Kemp and Plovert to continue playing.

The three men sat in silence, until Cam finally spoke.

"So. Um, has anyone heard from," he shifted awkwardly, "ya know, anyone from, like-"

"High school?" Dempsey finished for him.

"Yup." Cam blushed slightly.

"Well, obviously, I saw a lot of the guys at Josh's wedding." Derrick turned and flicked Josh, like he used to do when they were still boys.

"Yeah, and Kori and them were there too." Josh nodded.

"And I heard Griffin got real big in the tech industry somewhere out here a couple years back." Cam added in.

It went on like this, all three guys skating around the people they really wanted to discuss; the Pretty Committee.

Cam sighed. The awkwardness was killing him and he had a sneaking feeling that the only way to relieve it was to go to the reunion. _G__reat._

* * *

__Kristen threw her bags down on the huge bed and raced to the shower; a tradition she had had for years. Whenever she had passed a big milestone or gotten done with something she had been absolutely freaking out about (namely, exams and championships), she always took a shower. And this definitely counted.

As she stepped into the shower, she smiled to herself. It was good to see the PC again; well, not just good, it was _amazing_. She had kind of been worried that seeing them again would bring back those memories, but it had been fun and even a little bit therapeutic. She could tell that Dylan was kind of itching to talk about...the olden days, but Alicia and Claire seemed to want avoid the topic and that suited Kristen just fine.

She sighed as she massaged the kinks out of her shoulder and rubbed the soothing shampoo into her hair. She leaned back and smiled.

And she would have kept smiling, if it wasn't for a sudden, insistent knocking on the door.

* * *

**A/N: Everything looks longer when you're writing it. Well, at least, it seemed longer. Anyways, reviews are worth more than Chanel boots. So review.**


End file.
